Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Around 1500 well developed and legal colonies are yet to be handed over to the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC). Sans any ‘caretaker’, the basic amenities like sanitation, drinking water, electricity, roads in these colonies and residential complexes have gone for a toss owing to lack of maintenance. The responsibility of the maintenance of these residential colonies rests initially with their respective colonizers and builders but they too after developing it leave it to the residents and the respective societies to take care of the existing amenities. As the development charges of BMC are quite high, the colonizer and the respective societies are unable to come into the fold of the municipal body. The BMC collects all due taxes from the residents but as the colonies are not being handed over to it, the corporation does not make any budgetary provisions for the development and maintenance of these colonies.
Zone-13 contributes maximum tax to the municipal exchequer. The zone covers colonies along Hoshangabad Road but so far most of the residential complexes have not been handed over to the municipal body. Owing to non maintenance for years, the sewage lines, inner roads are in bad shape, street lights are lying defunct in many of the colonies in the area.
New Colonies Welfare Association president Sunil Upadhyaya said that BMC is still to take under its fold around 1500 colonies in Bhopal. The colonizers and builders after developing the colonies leave all the maintenance work to the respective societies. Ten years on, even well developed colonies need regular maintenance but this is not happening and so many colonies are in bad shape.
BMC chairman Kishan Survyanshi said that handing over of the 1500 colonies is to be done but that is a separate issue we will see that the civic body takes up maintenance of the basic amenities as it is people who are suffering. “After 10 years even well developed colonies need maintenance but residents cannot force colonizers for it. BMC does not allocate funds for maintenance till colonies are transferred to it,” said the chairman.
There are three categories of colonies, the first being the illegal colonies which have been legalized by the government. The residents will now be able to take bank loans for constructions. Second in the category are the colonies that are developed by MP Housing Board and Bhopal Development Authority. These colonies automatically get transferred to BMC and the civil work maintenance of the civic body. Third in the list are the private colonies developed by builders after due clearance of maps by Town and Country Planning (T&CP). Such colonies are legal and well developed but BMC does not invest or allocate any funds for maintenance as these colonies are yet to be handed over to it.
